SNIPPETS OF INFORMATION
PAINTINGS - Kerala Murals
Guruvayur Devaswom's Institute of Mural Painting
* Jul 2021
Kerala Murals - Pigments and glues prepared from materials
obtained from nature, purified and mixed in definite proportions are
applied on freshly prepared walls of temples, churches, palaces and
houses. Brushes made of natural materials are used to apply the prepared
pigments in dot and lines, over light washes if needed, to compose each
figure. The resilience of the pigments offers strength and stability to
the painting assuring long life to the work done. Anatomy of
characters, including animals trees etc, are represented in a regionally
stylized form. One panel might hold several scenes Separated by
specific lines (manimala). Yellow, red, green, white and black are the
most prominent hues seen in the murals of Kerala. Deities when drawn are
mostly based on the invocatory verses found in the relevant ancient
scriptures. When such a work is undertaken, a muralist is instructed to
follow certain Observances and meditate up on th eproposed form. The
various components in a panel remind us of iconography symbols as well
as the patterns and figures done on floor using powdered natural
pigments (kalamezhuthu), pointing towards the evolution of the mural
style.
Source: keralamuralpainting.com
* Jul 2021
Kerala, often referred to as God’s own country has a very interesting
history of mural making. Believed to have started in the 7th and 8th
century; majorly influenced by Pallava art. The oldest Kerala style
murals have been found at a rock cut temple of Thirunandikara, now in
Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu which was probably made in the 9th or 10th
century. There is some doubt about mural making in between 10th and 13th
centuries but from the 14th to 16th century many were made and continue
to this day after continuing revival efforts.
The magnificent art of mural painting is well depicted in many temples
across Kerala. The Vaddakumnathan temple at Thrissur, the Chemmanthita
Siva temple, Thrissur, Kudamaloor, Kannur, Thodeekkalam, Kannur, the
Sreevallabha temple, Thiruvalla the Mahadeva Siva temple, Ettamanoor,
Pallikarup Mahavishnu temple, Mannarkad, Palakkad, the Padmanabhaswamy
temple at Thiruvananthapuram, Guruvayur temple, Guruvayur, Vaikom
temple, Kottayam, among many others.
Source: Art of Kerala : magnificent murals, Soma Ghosh, deccanviews.wordpress.com
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